The Truth About Green Products

In all honesty, I am more excited about this piece than I am about most of my others, because it is an article that I know could really and truly help people. If some of the suggestions end up reducing a family’s exposures to toxic chemicals, then I am one happy lady.
While reporting the piece, I learned something that really shocked me: so-called “green” or “natural” household cleaners aren’t any less toxic than regular ones—and in fact, are sometimes more so. You really need to know this stuff.

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"I have often wondered about these"organic/green" products. Very interesting."4 stars by Patty

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Reducing Exposure

Recently, I had a short feature in Redbook about managing and preventing indoor air pollution.

It might not be the most eloquent article I’ve ever written, but in all honesty, I am more excited about this piece than I am about most of my others, because it is an article that I know could really and truly help people. If some of the suggestions end up reducing a family’s exposures to toxic chemicals, then I am one happy lady.

Toxic?

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A Shocking Claim

While reporting the piece, I learned something that really shocked me: so-called “green” or “natural” household cleaners aren’t any less toxic than regular ones—

and in fact, are sometimes more so. In a study in-press in Environmental Impact Assessment Review, Anne Steinemann, a civil and environmental engineer at the University of Washington, and her colleagues analyzed the chemicals emitted from 25 fragranced consumer products—things like laundry products, cleaning supplies, personal care products and air fresheners.

More than half were the bestselling brands in their category, and 11 of them made green claims on their labels or Material Safety Data Sheets using words like ”organic,” “non-toxic” or “natural.”

Volatile Organic Compounds

Steinemann found that the 25 products each released an average of 17 volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and that every single product released at least one chemical classified as “toxic”

or “hazardous” under U.S. Federal Laws. The green products didn’t fare any better—in fact, they seemed to be worse: each of the 11 emitted at least two VOCs that have been classified as toxic or hazardous, and four of them released at least one known carcinogen.

Hazardous To Your Health

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No Regulations

that the products might actually be nastier than the run-of-the-mill brands. The core of the problem is that there are no laws regulating green marketing, so a company can say its product is all-natural or non-toxic without having to prove anything or even disclose its ingredients on the bottle. A recipe for disaster—quite literally.

What To Do?

So what can you do? Luckily, there are ways to sort the good from the bad. The Good Guide, a database compiled by UC-Berkeley professor of environmental and labor policy Dara O’Rourke,

rates consumer products like cleaners, toys, food, and personal care products according to their potential health and environmental impacts, so that’s a good place to start. Steinemann points out, though, that the guide isn’t flawless in that it sometimes glosses over potentially dangerous compounds.

Make Your Own

Homemade Cleaners

Another option is to use simple homemade cleaners, like baking soda and vinegar and lemon juice, which can actually do a pretty good job.

Finally, if you’re dead-set on using the brand name stuff, you can limit your exposure by spraying the products on sponges or rags rather than directly on hard surfaces (you’ll inhale less of it), and by ventilating the room as you clean.

For still more suggestions—and helpful hints about how to prevent exposure to other nasties, like cooking fumes and mold, check out my piece.